Association  Planning:

From  Visions to Realities

 

By

 

John A. Seeley, Ph.D.
 

Reprinted from an  article appearing in Association News, February/March 1994 issue

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Association leaders and  members often wonder about engaging their associations in planning.  Some of those considerations are as follows: What are the benefits  and pitfalls? What are the steps in the process? Who should be  involved? How should we communicate the results? Is it really  worth the time and effort? These and other key questions deserve  answers before planning begins.
 

Goethe once wrote:
 

"Whatever you  can do, or dream you can,begin it. Boldness has genius, power andmagic in it"
 

Years later Pogo added  these words of wisdom:
 

"We are surrounded  by insurmountable opportunities."
 

Any number of sages have  repeated the notion that if you do not have a sense of direction,  it makes little difference which path you are on or chose to  follow. Good things often happen while wondering in the woods.  However, scarce resources and limited time suggest the need for  a more systematic approach and process. Planning should empower  an association with a keen sense of direction, develop commitment  among its members, and create options for the future.
 

The current context for  association planning is important to review. Four assumptions  provide the rationale for planning and shape the ideas offered  in this article. They are:

• associations exist to  serve their members
• associations operate  in turbulent environments
• association membership  is in constant flux
• associations operate  with scarce resources

With these assumptions  in mind, what are some key planning concepts? Useful distinctions  are made between strategic and operational planning. Strategic  planning helps answer the following questions: Where do we want  to go, and why do we want to go there? Strategic planning is  a process which shapes an associations direction. When it is  well done, the strategic planning process builds understanding  and commitment along the way. It focuses on a vision, mission,  purposes and goals. These elements move the organization from  the abstract and inspirational to the specific and practical.  They are the strategic parts of planning that focus an association  on where it is headed and position it in its external environment.
 

Operational planning answers the following questions:  How are we going to get where we want to go.î What are  our key activities related to accomplishing our goals? Who, staff  and/or volunteer(s), is/are responsible for accomplishing them?  What is the time line for implementing the plan? What are the  budgetary requirements for implementing the plan? Answers to  these questions shape an operational or action plan. Strategic  planning provides a conceptual guide for the future, while operational  planning provides specific guideposts to evaluate progress.
 

Performance assessment is the process of evaluating  progress against the association's mission and specific guideposts.  Performance standards can be established and information can  be collected to determine progress and performance quality.
 

Reasons to Plan
 

Associations plans for  many good reasons and it experiences some pitfalls and frustrations  along the way. The chart below highlights some of these.

 

Planning Overview
 

The concepts mentioned  above and discussed below are displayed in Figure 1: The Endless  Cycle. The basic ideas are that visions are born from some sense  of reality or the environment. They are more fully developed  and refined through strategic and operational planning. Performance  assessment contributes to keeping an association on track and  to continually improving performance by developing feedback,  identifying performance gaps and suggesting needed changes. The  performance assessment process is continuous for each planning  element. However, the feedback loop is shorter and the change  process is more rapid for more specific and shorter range goals.

 

Reasons to Plan

• establish, reform and/or  renew a sense of direction
• determine current association  performance
• create new and/or improve  old activities
• reengineer the organizational  structure
• foster member commitment  and desire for action
• create a framework for  accountability
• provide priorities for  resource allocation

 

Pitfalls and Frustrations

• an ill conceived and  unintegrated planning process
• too limited a budget  for data collection and reporting
• unrealistic expectations  about time requirements
• unclear planning goals
• not involving key or  sufficient members
• poor facilitator/ association  fit
• not keeping members  informed of progress

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Figure  1: The Endless Process

Planning Steps
 

Association planing involves  four very basic and simple steps: 1) designing the planning process,  2) implementing the process, 3) communicating the results, and  4) institutionalizing the plan and the planning process. There  are many right ways to plan effectively, and each association  will shape its plan within its own culture, resources and operating  style. There are many opportunities for creativity in designing  the process, in interpreting the results and in finding solutions  to move the mission of the association forward. Planning can  be fun!

 

Designing the Planning  Process
 

Carefully designing the  initial and ongoing planning process is crucial for its success.  Some key issues to consider are:

• determining the purposes  of planning
• establishing a special  planning group
• using an outside facilitator
• focusing on all or only  some management areas
• deciding how to keep  members involved
• creating linkages among  staff and volunteers
• allocating an adequate  budget for planning
• integrating planning  with other functions

Implementing the Process
 

In general the planning  process uses visioning techniques to establish or reaffirm the  central purpose for the associations existence. The result is  a statement that can guide decisions and communicate intent.  The next ingredient is some form of strategic analysis, often  using some form of the SWOT model. SWOT is an acronym for determining  an associations Strengths and Weaknesses and for examining Opportunities  and Threats in its external environment.

Abraham Lincoln once  wrote:
 

"If we could  first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we couldbetter judge what to do and  how to do it."

Key decisions at this  stage in the process are: 1) who to include in the visioning  process and how to design it, 2) how extensively to collect data  to support the strategic analysis process, 3) how best to interpret  the results, and 4) what products are desired as a result of  visioning and strategic analysis.
 

Visioning can be an exciting  process. It is often conducted in a retreat setting involving  current staff, volunteer leaders, some old hands and possibly  some up and comers. It is a special opportunity to think the  big thoughts, to call into question the associations basic reasons  for existence and to do it at a leisurely pace. The process can  take many forms, but the product is usually a written statement  that is circulated and affirmed by the appropriate stake holders.
 

Strategic analysis is  a stock taking process. It develops information from introspection,  e.g., a careful look at how well the association is currently  performing in light of its goals, and from an environmental analysis,  e.g., the identification of trends/issues in its environment  that will impact the association. This process can utilize a  leadership group, the members at large and/or outside experts.  Surveys, interviews, focus groups and the review of key documents  are information collection strategies often used in this process.
 

Once the information  is collected, it has to be interpreted. What are its implications  for the vision/mission, for the services currently provided or  those to be created, for staffing, for the governance/committee  structure of the association, and finally for the budget? The  initial interpretation is usually done by a relatively small  group of stake holders, those people who have a special interest  in the information or a special capacity to interpret it. e.g..  staff, volunteer leadership, past presidents.
 

The interpretation of  this information leads into operational planning. Short, mid  and long range goals are developed, timetables are established  , staff and volunteer assignments are made or negotiated, and  needed resources are identified. These decisions become the operational  plan that includes the framework for accountability against which  performance can be assessed. In assessing performance, it is  just as important to understand why something did or did  not occur and why it did or did not meet quality expectations,  as it is to know if and when it occurred.

The strategic plan might  be best conceived of as a loose leaf binder as well as a formal  document. A formal document could include the following sections:

• an executive summary
• the association's vision/  mission
• the strategic analysis,  e.g., SWOT
• short, mid and long  term goals
• programs/activities  to meet the goals
• time lines with assignments  of responsibilities
• resource requirements
• a summary statement  of next steps to implement the plan

Reporting the Results  of the Initial Planning Process.
 

It is very important  to keep the membership informed about the purposes, status and  results of the planning process. The design for the planning  process should have a master schedule. It can be communicated  to the membership so that expectations can be created and progress  can be assessed.
 

Every association has  its own communications vehicles. Newsletters, journals, monthly  updates, conferences, committee meetings are all potential ways  to build interest in and support for planning. It is important  for someone to be assigned the task of designing and managing  the communications plan, since this part of the process often  receives insufficient attention.
 

Institutionalizing the  Plan
 

The final step in the  planning process is to institutionalize the plan. This is where  the loose leaf binder idea may be important. It symbolizes both  flexibility and stability and can be continually updated. Progress  toward goals and time lines should be monitored and documented  in the binder by the appropriate staff and/or volunteers within  the committee structure of the association. This monitoring process  is important because the results can feed into a continuous improvement  process. Quality standards can be set, performance can be assessed  and improvements made.
 

Key issues to consider  when institutionalizing the plan are: 1) how often to review  progress, e.g., quarterly, semiannually or yearly, 2) how often  to revisit the mission and strategic analysis, e.g., biannually,  every five years, and finally, 3) where in the organizational  structure to assign responsibility for the review process, e.g.,  with the executive committee, with a strategic planning committee,  or with the executive director.
 

In sum, strategic  planning offers associations an opportunity to create  or rejuvenate their visions/missions and to build commitment  among the leadership and general membership in the process. It  is an energizing process.
 

Operational planning translates the mission into  manageable goals and workable activities for achieving them.
 

PerformanceAssessment is the mechanism for assessing  progress. Operational planning and performance assessment align  an association's behavior with its intentions. They promote organizational  integrity.


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